Improvement in artificial arms



UNITED 'STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HIRAM A. KIMBALL AND ANDREW J. LAWRENCE, OF PHILADELPHIA, PA.

- |MPaovEMENT IN ARTIFICIAL ARMS.

Specilication forming part of Letters Patent- No. 47,835, dated May 23,1865.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, HIRAM A. KIMBALL and ANDREW J. LAWRENCE, both of the cityw of Philadelphia, and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Artificial Limbs 5 and we do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, making a part of this specification, in which-- Figure l is front view ofthe hand; Fig 2, a side view of the same; Fig. 3, a front view of the elbow and forearm Fig. 4, a side view of the same; Fig. 5, afront view ofthe elbowlever detached 5 Fig. 6, a view of the shoulder and fastening straps detached; Fig. 7, a sectional view of the socket, showing the strap in a red color, and showing a-lso the mode of applying thelstrap to the socket.

Our improvements are designed to be used in connection with the application of vulcanized gum to the exterior natural forms of artificial limbs for which Letters Patent were granted to the said Hiram A. Kimball on the 18th of August, 1863. v

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use our invention, we will proceed to described its construction and mode of operation.

a c', Fig. 1, are two pieces of springbrass running from the end of the finger to a point below the center ofthe first joint and between the ends oftwo pieces of brass, b b, running from the first joint of the nger to the palm of the hand. A small turned brass cylinder, c, is riveted into the levers a a b b', at each joint of the levers, as shown,and through each of these cylinders a steel pin, d, inserted through the gum shell of the finger, and at the center of each joint and through the ends of the levers described, locks the partstogether. From the front side of levers c a', in the first joint of the nger, protrude two short projections, e e', of which e is shown in Fig. 2. Between the extremities of the projections there is riveted one end of a bar, f, which is fastened at the other end in the back of the knuckle of the hand, as shownat g, in Fig. 2. A steel spring, h, Fig. 2, fastened at one end by a rivet between the levers a c', passes over the back of the cylinder c and in front of the pivot in the lower lever, b b. This completes the description of the system of fore-finger levers with their necessary appendages. There finger and for the thumb. Two bell-cranklevers, (marked jj,) pivoted at the wrist, one arm of each lever extending into the palm ot the hand, have fastened across their ends the bar k, Fig. 1. The ends of the levers b b from each finger come in contact with the back ot the bar lc. The other arms of the levers j j' extend across the wrist, and have fastened t( their ends, at Z l', Fig. 2, two bars, m m', tln extremities of which are riveted to a lever, n, which crosses the wrist, having one end piv. oted at 0, Fig. l, and to the other end of which -there is attached the metallic strap p, which runs up the arm to the motive power. It is manifest that a pull on the strap p will pul the lever a, which through the aid of the bars m m', operates the levers j j', which in dturn operate the levers b b and a a and shut the fingers. The spring h opens the ngers as soon as the levers are relieved. The thumb is operated in like manner, butin an opposite direction, producing a grip like that of a pair of icetongs.

g, Fig. l, is a spring-catch fastened at one end to the shell of the hand, extending up the wrist, and through the end of which passes the rod r from the outside of the forearm. By means of rod r the catch q is so operated that when the movable end of the lever n is drawn up the arm the catch q falls into a notch in said lever and holds the hand cl-osed. Whenever power is applied through the strap p the lever n is freed and the hand opened.

s, Figs. 3 and 5, is a lever jointed at one end to the upper extremity of the strap p, and at the other endto the strap t, which extends outside of the arm to motive power. The levers has a curved slot by means of which it is allowed to slide on the end of the elbowpivot u, Fig. 3, and caused to operate in such a way that at whatever angle the forearm is bent a motive power applied at one end, through t, directly aifects theother end, and thence the machinery of the hand.

n v are two bars of wood, each fastened at one end to the shell of the wrist, their other ends extending through the bearing w of the elbowjoint, as seen in Figs. 3 and 4. These bars perform an office for the articial arm similar to that of the bones in the natural arm.

w, Fig 3, is a block of wood fastened to and 1s a similar arrangement of paris `ifor each` between the bars c fo. This block forms a bearing for the slidecatch y, which is operated by lever z near the wrist.

A, Fig. 3, is a curved metallic rest, perfo` rated with holes, into which the slide l@/maybe moved, thus fixing the forearm at any desired angle.

In Fig. 6, B is a buckle, to the cross-bar of whichlis fastened one end of the strap C, which passes inside of the exterior form and outside of the lining of the socket, the buckling up of which strap tightens or loosens the socket.

The mode of applying` the strap to the socket is seen distinctly in Fig. 7.

E, Fig. 6, is a non-elastic strap attached to the middle strap, t. F is a non-elastic strap intended to pass around the shoulder opposite the shoulder bearing the artiiicial arm, and having one end buckled to an elastic attachment, D, which is fastened tothe straps G Gr', which are buckled to the socket.

We are well aware that levers have been long used to move artificial fingers, and donot desire to claim such, broadly; but

Having thus described our improvements,

what we claim, and desire to `secure by Letters Patent, are- I. The arrangement of the levers b b, jj, and

n, in combination with the spring h, to. open- II. The lever s, by means of which the motive power acts upon the lingers when the forearm is in any position, said lever being constructed and arranged substantially as described.

Ill. The bars Q1 o', in combination with the catch y and rest A, whereby the forearm is is set and held in any desired position, the whole constructed and arranged substantially as described.

IV. The employment of the elastic strapD, by which the artificial arm is held in position without chaling or coniining other parts of the body, substantially as described.

HIRAM A. KIMBALL. ANDREW J. LAWRENCE. VWitnesses J. E. SHAW,

Gr. E. BUCKLEY. 

